Long evenings with asd son

[pinktoothbrush]

Hi, could anyone give me any ideas on what they do with their asd kids of an evening when most other children are asleep?
Ds1 is 7 and eventually goes to sleep at around 11pm. It's not that he's much trouble though the endless trips up to see what he wants and to limit the bouncing around, are bit draining, but how to entertain him? He'd happily watch tv but he watches a lot already and we'd never get to see any (mean selfish parents wanting to veg out in front of mindless tv).
I feel like we need more of a routine after about 8pm when he's had his bath, stories with ds2 etc. We have been letting him read in bed but not sure it's the solution.
Any ideas? We have tried playing games as an exercise in turn taking etc but the problems with losing make this stressful.
Never tried letting him listen to music or stories? Any success with that anyone? Any ideas gratefully received.

Have you tried asking paediatrician for melatonin to help him relax and switch off? My DS has it for when he wakes at 2/3 in the morning to help him go back to sleep,as he's great at going to sleep. My friends DS wouldn't/couldn't switch off at bedtime and would stay up late,melatonin has worked fo him and he's asleep by 8.30/9 now

I let DS2 have his iPod until 9pm then he can read. He's 12 though. If you can find books he likes it's the best solution, I think. Anything electric or electronic is banned after 9 here because he likes them too much and would never settle to sleep. We have a vast library of dog eared books, Horrible Histories, Science, Murdeous Maths, Guinness World records, How much poo can a wombat do? Are bogeys good for you? etc etc. Buy box sets from book clubs maybe, and give them out one at a time. Captain Underpants was popular at 7 as was Jeremy Strong. HTH

My DS has asd too but has always been like clockwork with bedtimes so I've no experience sorry but I can offer suggestions;

-A telescope so he can look at stars
-Listening to audiobooks
-Push his bedtime routine back a bit later
-Ask him to be a little helper with tasks for the next day like making up packed lunch boxes, he might enjoy the responsibility too?
-DS has his own craft box in his room which he quietly works with in his room, maybe making your DS one so he can work through different craft activities before bed
-sticker books etc to work on like hotwheels sticker books

Sorry if the suggestions are a bit rubbish, DS is only 5 and is quite immature too so I'm not used to thinking up activities for older boys.

No longer have any great issues with going to sleep but come this time of year, my ASD DS wakes earlier and earlier. And wants company .
Thankfully he is an independent reader and has stacks of Beast Quest books, Horrible Science, Horrible History etc etc. He reads these or if he is out of books, he lies in bed and stims (oh dear lord- more patience please).
I do find though that watching anything electronic (tv, i-pad, PC) definitely makes behaviour much worse.

The things that have helped ds to sleep. He is now in bed by 9.30 and usually asleep by about 10.30. He never used to sleep until about 1am. I think you have to keep you aims realistic, if a child doesnt sleep until 1am, expecting them to sleep at 8pm isnt going to happen. I have gradually reduced the time, its taken years!

1. Melatonin, just for a month or two, to help reset his body clock. He had not been able to sleep, if its a long standing problem, i think they need help to break the habit.

1. I let ds read in bed for a bit.

1. CAMHS relaxation techs have helped him to relax.

We're struggling with this as well. DS2 used to go to sleep fairly well, but woke up repeatedly during the night. Now he's still waking up, but less frequently, and having a dreadful time actually getting to sleep. He just cannot shut down.

We're debating the melatonin at this point, as it's reaching a point where he is exhausted in the morning.

He does have books he can look at and a flashlight as he sometimes likes to have some light in the room, but gets upset when he gets out of bed (to turn on the light) as he cannot cover himself back up again properly (coordination problems) when he gets back into bed. We do end up making numerous trips upstairs to sort things for him. sigh.. But we have a baby monitor in his room that has a talk back feature on it, so often we can head a few things off just by talking to him over the monitor.

Ds (9) has a radio on low for background noise.

He tends to either read or draw until he eventually falls asleep.

He has melatonin but these days it tends to be very hit-and-miss.

DS goes to sleep OK but doesn't stay that way!

Things to occupy him at 2 am include:-
Plasma Globe lamp.
Audio story from storynory.com (Natasha the narrator's voice is perfect for calming!)
Stroke cat

He has all-in- one pjs as he kicks all covers off and then can't settle & a mummy sleeping bag which seems to help calm.

I'm about to try and make a weighted blanket having heard about a clinical trial Guys hospital are doing with these in their sleep clinic. NO idea if it'll work but desperate times 'n all that.

Some folks swear by piriton the hayfever remedy - however I'd check with the GP to be on the safe side first.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I've already got captain underpants out of the library on the strength of the recommendation. We have a weighted blanket, which sadly didn't have a magic effect but maybe we'll give it another go. I need to have a think about the whole family - we're all after different things at the same time. All I can say is he generally does stay asleep once he's got off and doesn't seem overly tired, so am extremely grateful for that. Thanks